Already at the service center but...what could have caused this:

Heard a clatter to the engine's idle sound yesterday - popped the hood and felt it was coming from the front driver's side of the engine compartment but couldn't localize it further. Sounded like valve clatter, but really wasn't coming from the head as far as I heard. I thought gee, better take Friday off and get this puppy in.

On the way to work today, doing 30 in a 30mph zone - the engine just stopped. Electrical including heat fan and radio were still on. Attempts to start just lit all my panel lights, no click, no turnover, nada.

Any ideas out there? Gonna cost an arm and a leg or just a leg perhaps?

 

check your timing belt to see if that had broken or a ground wire on the engine. will it turn over or no? if it does the there might be a ground broken or your coil pack might have taken a sh*t.

 

Thanks for the reply!

Nope, no turn over, no nothing. Just the idiot lights all light up with no click, turnover or any other sound indicating something is trying to happen under the hood.

If I lost the timing belt, might that explain the rattle of yesterday? Like it was about to go and finally took a poop? Sounds seemed to be from the front-drivers-side of the engine - in front of the block, I'd say.

 

Its looking a lot like timing belt. It def. wasnt ground wire. If the noise was in the very front of your engine it was prob the belt. Im so sorry to hear about this may your Audi RIP. If you are gonna part it out lemme know.

 

Engine should turnover if the timing belt snapped.

The fact that your starter is not engaging and no clicks sounds like either a bad ignition switch or a bad starter relay, or a very dead battery. See if you get anything with a booster cable. I'd put my money on either the the ignition switch or the starter relay, or the ECU.

 

Not neccesariy, he was driving at the moment at 30mph and the car took a dump, i have seen cars roll into shop that will not crank period and broke timing belts and caused EXTREME internal damage to the point where the crank was locked up from a chunk of piston and would not allow the flywheel to turn. This story unfortunately does not look "good" rattling noise from front of engine and sudden engine failure at 30mph but all electrical is in tact inside the vehicle with no signs of a drained battey, i would say i would be expecting the worse here, but you never know some people do get lucky.